Does the royal family in England have any real power, or is it just a ceremonial position?

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I know they once had all the power, but is the parliamentary government in full control now, or can the royals actually affect politics, administration, and control over the country?

Edit: Thank all of you so much for taking the time to answer. This includes all of you with theories of power behind the curtains. It’s actually quite fascinating, and I am still combing through comments.

A very special thanks goes out to all the people that have “politely” corrected my use of the word, “England”. I would remind you that questions are for the point of learning. I appreciate your contribution.

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Anonymous 0 Comments

There are some interesting aspects of the various “Royal” elements, such as the military.
The British Army and Airforce swears direct name-dropped allegiance to the Sovereign (Charles at the moment)
Not to England, or the PM, or the government, Charles the Third personally, his heirs and successors, and any generals or officers appointed by him to command his armies.

This isn’t just a notional concept of the head of state being head of the armed forces, the armed forces follow the orders of a representative of the king in the form of the office of the PM, and the various Chief of Defence Staff, but ultimately their loyalty by oath is to the person of the Sovereign.

Hypothetically, if the Sovereign decided to exercise their power and started issuing direct orders to the military, they *are* the top of the chain of command, not just a figurehead with their position provided as courtesy to the head-of-state, and those orders would be entirely legal and have to be followed.
The Government (as established in the name of the Sovereign) does not have the authority to countermand those orders.

Basically if Charles turns around tomorrow and decides he’s had enough of backseat driving the nation, he would be perfectly within his authority and personal power to both disband the government, and command the military to back him up.

So the TLDR: it’s pretty much all delegated, but the actual wording of the authority is still very much derived from Royal Prerogative. If the King turns around and decides he’s done with it, he still very much has the legal standing to make it happen, and the military are oath-bound to follow him, which is probably the most crucial part of it. Everything else falls out of that.

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